Happy Friday everyone! For the past two weeks you have heard me ramble on how I've had the worst cold, but there is some good news/ bad news. Lets start with the good news first. I'm finally coming to the tale end of my cold, and only have a runny nose. FINALLY! Time for the bad news. I went to the dr yesterday, and I have BPPV (benign paroxysmal positional vertigo). Ever since I've been sick I have been constantly dizzy, and it turns out I have vertigo. Great....

My dr said this is very common after a bad cold, and that it should go away very fast if I do head positioning exercises twice a day. If any of you have had BPPV please give me some tips!

JavaScript is currently disabled in this browser. Reactivate it to view this content.

Wednesday, January 27, 2016

Whether you are a gym rat or barre addict you would be crazy to not use a foam roller. Not familiar?! Well say hello to your new best friend.

With training for my full marathon I've been taking even more time to stretch my muscles (stretch post last seen here), and use the foam roller for a good 15 minutes. Before I discovered this amazing tool my calves would throb for hours after a long run, and I would use compression socks to take away the throbbing stress on my muscle. Sometime I would lay down on the ground, and tell Todd to take a rolling pin to roll out the back of my legs. Kitchen gadgets.....not just for cooking ;)

Foam rollers are an amazing tool to do a self massage (myofascial release) on the muscles to release muscle tightness, trigger points, and increase blood circulation. Uhhh....sounds heavenly right? By using your own body weight on the roller you are able to break down soft tissue and scar tissue. Now for the forewarning:

Yes it hurts a little

Yes it works

Yes you will feel amazing afterwards

Whenever I use my foam roller I will literally shake, and breath deeply as I roll out specific muscle areas. Before I use my roller I find a quiet area in the gym or home, blast my James Bay Pandora radio, and use this time as meditation as I massage through each muscle group. In the pictures above I included some of my favorite muscle groups I like to massage: hamstrings, calves, quads, and butt. To use your foam roller you want to place the area of your body you want to massage, and use your body to move back and fourth. I like to go slow so that my muscle gets the direct pressure of my body weight. On areas that feel extremely tight and painful I hold that position on the roller until the area softens. One thing to keep in mind when you are foam rolling is to start at one end of the muscle, and work your way up and down again. Like anything you do make sure you listen to your body, and don't do anything that doesn't feel right when you are foam rolling.

Happy Tuesday everyone. Some of you have been following me for a while, and know somewhat about who I am. For those who are recent followers I want to give you a chance to know more about me, and answer all of your questions whether it be blogging, hair, makeup, family, fitness, diet, ect. Leave a comment below with your questions, and I'll answer all your questions within a week or two in a post. Also if there's anything else you would like to see on my blog please include that as well.

Monday, January 25, 2016

I hope you all had an amazing weekend, but here in the Edmund's household I am holding on by a thread with this horrible cold. With being sick for a consecutive 3 weeks I've been lying dormant in my home like a littler hermit crab. We can all relate that during time of sickness we all don't feel or look our best. Not wanting sickness to hold me down I've been trying to find ways to pamper myself during such downtime. Back in December People Stylewatch magazine sent me this new innovative skincare product called Dermaflash, and has been sitting on my counter waiting for me to open the package. With the holiday bustle and travel schedule taking up the majority of my time I never had the opportunity to bust out my new gadget.

After my first use three weeks ago I couldn't believe that I didn't open this sooner! I wasn't quite sure what to expect because I've never heard of Dermaflash before, but it is now my weekly beauty go to. Dermaflash has now been added to the small list of items that I can't live without in my bathroom. The list goes a little something like this: Clarisonic, Pureology Nanoworks, Chi Blowdryer, Kerastase Nectar Thermique, and now Dermaflash.

I've told you how much I love Dermaflash now let me tell you what it does. Dermaflash is a spa inspired exfoliator that removes dead skin cells and peach fuzz by using sonic vibrations revealing silky smooth skin. When I first tried this product I couldn't believe how much smoother, and more clear my skin was. My makeup started to go on flawlessly, which has always been hard for me to achieve since I have peach fuzz on my face. After just 2 weeks of using this product I've noticed my skin being more radiant and bright.

Friday, January 22, 2016

Remember when I was talking about MD Skin Lounge back here? After I got my amazing facial I then headed to see my friend in the next room to get my first round of Botox. Did she just say that, and admit that?! Yes, I surely did.

Now I didn't "need" Botox because I'm still in my mid twenties, but I was starting to develop a line between my brows that was starting to bother me. We are all our own worst critics, and this was something that I've been wanting to fix for over a year. The week before my appointment I was beyond giddy, and excited to get some injections. Throughout the studios I was telling clients, friends, and co workers about how I was getting Botox that week. I was beyond surprised to how many other women have had injections as well ranging from mid twenties to upper fifties telling my how much they have loved it. No wonder why they looked so good!

When the day finally came I was in absolute awe of how amazing the MD Skin Lounge office was. For those individuals who might not want others to know they are having work done, the office has multiple waiting rooms. Complementary Kaleidoscope juices was my favorite part of waiting. While sipping on my juice as I filled out paperwork I hear Todd admiring the artwork, and making verbal notes of how he wants his oral surgery office to look like this one day. Another great thing about MD Skin Lounge is that have a point system where each time you go into the office for a service, that service will be a certain amount of points. After accumulating enough points you can redeem them on treatments.

After I got my soothing silk peel the office workers then took some before pictures of me to evaluate my facial symmetry. When the time came for the needle to hit my skin, I was scared that it would hurt. To my surprise there was little discomfort, and was over in a blink of an eye. When looking in the mirror I thought that everything would be filled in, but it actually takes a couple days to kick in.

A couple days passed, and I felt it kick in all of a sudden (literally I felt it kick in). The feeling is hard to describe, but it felt heavy all of a sudden in my forehead (the feeling lasted a day). When looking at my skin in the mirror, I was escatic that the Botox filled in my line. I texted my PA friend right away, and told her that I was obsessed! It has been three weeks since I've had my injections, and I am so happy that I did it!

Here's a summary of what I learned and experienced:

Did it hurt?

Not at all. Everyone has a different pain threshold, so it could be different for someone else. My eyes did water a bit.

How often to you need to get it redone?

My friend told me that since I'm so active that my body might metabolize the Botox faster, and have to get it redone every three months. I'll keep you guys updated.

Can you feel and move your face?

Ha ha yes I can. I don't try to move my face a ton because I don't want to encourage wrinkles for the future.

Was there downtime?

Not really. My appointment was on a Saturday so I didn't have to be anywhere (plus I had a major cold). I did have a couple of bumps when I left, but that went away in a day. They told me not to wear makeup for a couple hours, and not do a sweaty workout.

Would you recommend Botox others to do it?
If there is something that you are uncomfortable with, and is safe for you then totally. The people at MD Skin Lounge are ah-mazing!

Do you feel weird getting cosmetic injections so young?

Not at all. Everyone's skin ages differently depending on habits and genetics. I'm all about maintence as I age. I want to be open with whatever I do so if you have any further questions please email me. :)

Wednesday, January 20, 2016

Normally on Wednesdays I would post something that was fitness or health related, but I've been struck by a horrible cold, and was unable to shoot anything for you guys. I promise I'll make it up to you next week ;) Even though I didn't post my regular segment today this IG roundup has been long overdue.

Leg Warmer: Pure Barre / Socks: Pure Barre / Bag: Simply Workout / I was beyond thrilled when I received this barre bag and picture of Pure Barre Phoenix from a follower. I honestly was so touched that this sweet gift traveled all the way to Arizona to be hand delivered to the studio.